Sheridan College Sheridan College

SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output, Research, and Creative SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output, Research, and Creative

Excellence Excellence

Faculty Books School of Humanities and Creativity

9-1-2016

The Sheridan Notebook The Sheridan Notebook

Brandon McFarlane Sheridan College, brandon.mcfarlane@sheridancollege.ca

Kristine Villeneuve Sheridan College

Devin Murray Sheridan College

Follow this and additional works at: https://source.sheridancollege.ca/fhass_huma_book

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SOURCE Citation SOURCE Citation McFarlane, Brandon; Villeneuve, Kristine; and Murray, Devin, "The Sheridan Notebook" (2016). Faculty Books. 1. https://source.sheridancollege.ca/fhass_huma_book/1

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License. This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Humanities and Creativity at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output, Research, and Creative Excellence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Books by an authorized administrator of SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output, Research, and Creative Excellence. For more information, please contact source@sheridancollege.ca.

The Sheridan Notebook The Sheridan Notebook

Printing Instructions for The Sheridan Notebook

1. Download The Sheridan Notebook and save it to your computer. save it to your computer.

2. Open the saved file and print the Notebook on legal-sized paperon legal-sized paper using Adobe’s Booklet

feature. (For instructions, see: https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/print-booklets-

acrobat-reader.html)

3. Save the SOURCE cover pages aside for future reference, and then fold the remaining

printed pages in half to create The Sheridan Notebook.

This book is available at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output, Research, and Creative Excellence: https://source.sheridancollege.ca/fhass_huma_book/1

The Sheridan Notebook

Introduction

The Sheridan Notebook was produced with the support of the inaugural Scholarly, Research, and Creative Activities Growth Grants; it is an integral component to a series of studies that seek to better understand (1) the impact of adult colouring on creativity and mindfulness, and (2) the educational potential of adult colouring. A growing volume of research suggests there is a noteworthy connection between mindfulness and creativity: mindful individuals through presence, openness, acceptance, and self-inquiry are able to adopt many perspectives and pursue multiple solutions when solving problems—characteristics held by highly creative and innovative individuals.

This book synthesizes adult colouring with the “In and Out” note-taking technique—developed by our colleagues at the International Center for Studies in Creativity—to provide students with a novel way to develop their mindfulness skills in the classroom and beyond. Colouring promises to enhance mindfulness while the note-taking strategy deepens learning and retention of course material.

The Sheridan Notebook testifies how we love to get creative at our campuses in Brampton, Mississauga, and Oakville; it showcases our willingness to take risks in the pursuit of innovation; it demonstrates how committed we are to fostering creativity in all its diverse forms. The Sheridan Notebook is also a gift to the broader community, a piece of our creative campus that will, hopefully, be widely adopted by students across the globe or anyone else who wants to practice mindfulness. Enjoy!

—Prof. Brandon McFarlane—Illustrators: Kristine Villeneuve & Devin Murray

1 September 2016

Want more copies? Download from http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fhass_huma_book/1/

How to use the Sheridan Notebook

1. Print the Notebook on legal sized paper using Adobe’s Booklet feature.For instructions, see: https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/print-booklets-acrobat-reader.html

2. While attending a class or meeting, try to turn off all your mobile devices.

3. Colour the image and focus your attention on the action in the room.

4.. Observe the environment and write, in point form, any important insights on the ‘in’ column. These notes should consist of key words, ideas, or feelings that you want to remember or revisit. Just include enough information to trigger your memory or provide a source for further exploration. E.g. “creativity = novelty + usefulness.”

5. Use the “out” column to acknowledge and record anything that distractsyou. If you’re bored, acknowledge it and write “bored” in the ‘out’ column.If you’re anxious because you can’t remember if you left your window openand it might storm, acknowledge this worry by writing “window open?”.Recognize the anxiety, start colouring, and refocus your observation on theimmediate situation.

6. After the session, review your notes. Look at all the ‘ins,’ evaluate yourlevel of understanding, and develop the notes by referring to secondarysources such as your textbook, PowerPoint slides, handouts, or by askingthe instructor or a classmate for clarifications.

7. Review all the ‘outs.’ Solve any easy challenges or tasks. Then, reflect uponthe other ‘outs.’ Are there any consistent distractions that you can address?

8. Reflect upon how you can improve your study habits and mindfulnessin future sessions. Acknowledging, accepting, and sometimes addressingthese issues should help develop your mindfulness skills and your ability tolive in the moment; two skills that will boost the effectiveness of your studyhabits.

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the inaugural SRCA Growth Grant program. I am grateful for the financial support that promises to enhance learning at Sheridan and further establish the connection between mindfulness and creativity. Thank you to the faculty and administrators who imagined and facilitated the SRCA Growth Grants.

My colleagues in the Teaching and Learning Academy offered valuable feedback during the conceptualization of this project. I’d like to especially thank Michael Baker, Glenn Clifton, and Robyn Read. In addition, many colleagues in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences offered some helpful advice on the structuring of the studies, I’d like to especially thank Nathaniel Barr, Patrice Esson, Michael McNamara. This project couldn’t have been completed without the administrative support of Sean McNabney, Kavita Mathew, Raj Dhaliwal, Cindy Gillett, Diana Herholz, Keiko Kataoka, and the Sheridan Source team.

I must recognize the fantastic contributions of Sheridan students whose curiosity and creativity inspired the project. The first iteration of this notebook was produced through a Co-Curricular Record in which a team of students helped conceptualize, design, and improve the Notebook. Thank you Paola Crossley, Rachel DiSabatino, Raymond Tonga, Daniel Saulnier, Carmen Vella, and James Pratt. I’d also like to thank students who enrolled in Introduction to Creativity Studies and Principles of Creative Problem Solving who used the first iteration during the winter 2016 semester and offered feedback.

Finally, a special thank you to the Research Assistants who helped produce this very edition. Kristine Villeneuve and Devin Murray designed the glorious images and provided other timely administrative support. It was a pleasure to work with so many talented people!

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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